Nick Kyrgios recalls thrashing Rafael Nadal despite being hungover
Maverick tennis star Nick Kyrgios doesn't seem to get too hot and bothered about the prospect of facing Rafael Nadal. Having shared quite the dramatic and controversial history with Nadal both on and off the court, Nick Kyrgios has now claimed he can beat Nadal even when he is totally hungover.
In a recent podcast with his close friend and comedian Elliot Loney, Kyrgios recalled how he once partied really hard the night before clashing with the 19-time Grand Slam champion. That didn't affect him much though, as he went on to win easily anyway.
Over the years, there have been fireworks whenever Rafael Nadal and Nick Kyrgios have met each other. Although Nadal leads their head-to-head record 5-3, Kyrgios has been known to make him sweat with his unusual ways; the Spaniard often seems unsettled while playing the 25-year-old.
But for the talented Australian it's a different story altogether as he doesn't let the pressure (if any) of playing Nadal get to him.
Elliot Loney was in complete awe of his fellow Australian when he saw Kyrgios produce "freakish stuff" against "one of the best players in the world, on one of the biggest stages and dusting him up" - just 24 hours after having partied hard.
“And you sent it hard, and then I remember being in the hotel room; I was a full-blown foetus, a corpse. I turn on the TV, and there you were on the TV dusting up Rafael Nadal on a hard-court, and I could not believe it," Loney recalled.
Although it is uncertain which match Loney was talking about, chances are he was referring to the straight-sets thrashing Kyrgios handed to Nadal at the Cincinnati Masters in 2017.
“I was saying to my mate, I said, ‘I cannot believe Nick is doing this. Not only is he playing one of the best players in the world, and dismantling them, but he was out with us no more than 24 hours ago, off his nut...Like, I don’t understand how you’re able to play tennis at that level after doing that kind of stuff on a night out. Like how do you do it?" Loney marveled.
The stars aligned for that night: Nick Kyrgios
Kyrgios for his part didn't deny the story, and added a few interesting comments of his own.
“We went out, we had a great time,” the Australian told Loney. “I’m pretty sure we went pretty hard. And you know, a day-and-a-half later I saw the draw, and you know, I’m like, ‘I’ve got to play Rafa.’
Kyrgios also said he 'couldn't really move', so his only option was to ensure he didn't let Nadal get into the rallies. That apparently worked like a charm - as it often has for the big-serving, big-hitting Aussie.
“I just went out there and said, ‘Look, I’m going to play big. I can’t really move, I know that I can’t really move because I’m still probably hungover. So I’m going to have to serve really big, and just play super aggressive," Kyrgios recalled.
It's no easy task to take on Rafael Nadal when you are completely sober, let alone facing him at a time you are recovering from a bad hangover. But Kyrgios remembers that the "stars aligned for that night", making it easy for him to win against one of his fiercest rivals.
He lacks respect for the crowd, his opponent and towards himself: Nadal on Nick Kyrgios
The strained relationship between Rafael Nadal and Nick Kyrgios took a particularly unsavory turn last year at Acapulco, with both players lashing out at each other.
The duo have had their fair share of differences, and all their matches have been intense and dramatic. In their encounter at Acapulco, Kyrgios saved match points and ended up winning in three sets - but not before he got under Nadal's skin with his antics.
"He lacks respect for the crowd, his opponent and towards himself," Nadal had famously said after the match. And Kyrgios didn't hold back in his response, saying he 'wasn't going to listen' to the words of the all-time great.
I’m different, Rafa’s different," Kyrgios had said. "He can focus on what he needs to do. He doesn’t know the journey I’ve been through. He doesn’t know anything about me, so I’m not going to listen at all. It’s the way I play.”
As his hangover story shows, the Aussie clearly doesn't want the rivalry to fizzle out any time soon. And fans of drama and fireworks certainly won't be complaining.